It is common for broadcast programs to include situations where a show host or other speaker (referred to herein as “studio talent”) interviews or speaks with a reporter or other individual (referred to herein as the “remote talent”) at a remote site. Frequently, an irritating hesitation or delay occurs when the studio talent transfers or switches to the remote talent (which is commonly referred to as “throwing over” to the remote talent). This hesitation is primarily the result of delay caused by the distance the signal travels to the satellite and back, but is also compounded by digital technology which requires time to encode and decode the signal. The result is that when the studio talent throws to the remote talent there is an unnatural pause before viewers of the broadcast program see or hear a response from the remote talent.
For use in explaining issues associated with existing systems, reference is now made to FIG. 4 where a prior art representation of the timing and delays associated with a throw or switch to a remote broadcast feed from a studio broadcast are shown. In the illustrative figure, a top row 402′ along a time axis represents a feed associated with a studio broadcast (in a theoretical time, with no delay) and a feed associated with a remote broadcast 404′ (again, in the theoretical time, with no delay). In a theoretical timeline, with no delay, studio talent could ask a question 408, and receive an immediate response (with no delay) from remote talent (shown as an answer 410). In practice, however, a transmission delay occurs between the time when the studio talent throws to the remote talent. The effects of this delay are shown in rows 402 and 406 where a time axis represents a feed associated with a studio broadcast from an absolute time perspective at 402, and a row 404 along the same time axis represents a feed associated with a remote broadcast (from the same absolute time perspective). If there were no transmission or encoding delays, the studio talent would ask a question 408 of remote talent and the remote talent would answer 410 with no delay. Once the answer 410 is received, a further question 412 could be presented and the remote talent would answer 414, again, without delay.
In practice, however, a transmission delay (which may include an encoding or other delay) exists between the studio and the remote talent. This is depicted along the row 406 (which is presented from the point of view of the studio broadcast location where the broadcast is produced). The delay results in a gap 416 between the time when the studio talent asks the question 408 and the remote talent provides an answer 410. The gaps 416 are typically filled with video of either the studio talent awaiting a response or the remote talent waiting for the question to be completed in order to begin a response. In either case, the gaps contain audio silence with video that can be described as a “blank stare” from the talent. The existence of the gap 416 can be disruptive and distracting to viewers of the produced program. It would be desirable to provide systems and methods to reduce or eliminate the effects of such a delay.